Author Archives: leastbest

As I’ve been writing, I’ve been helping my brother deal with his cancer.  Couple weeks back he needed to have surgery on his neck to remove the remaining lumps and lymph nodes.  Many appointments were made and plans designed.

We went into Cleveland numerous times for testing and meetings.  We were told all of the risks.  There are important nerves that run down the neck and severing them could affect swallowing, talking, etc.  As my brother doesn’t drive I spent many hours each day.  Drive the fifteen miles to his house, wait for him to get ready (he was never ready to go) drive to Cleveland (25 miles or more), sit in a waiting room, drink bad coffee, see a doctor, wait while testing, drink more coffee, more testing, forget where the car was in the parking garage, find it, head home and do all of the errands he needs.

Most days were most of the day.  Finally the day of the surgery came and we got there bright and early.  We were there by nine, meaning I left my house at seven, and he was back in pre-op by ten.  I went out and had a bagel and studied some chess.

Around eleven I was allowed back to see him.  He looked pretty good.  It’s amazing how much weight he has lost.  He was upbeat and they sent me back to the chessboard.

Seidman Cancer Center is a great place.  They give you a pager like they have in restaurants.  I was able to take my set to the cafeteria and study.  Every two hours they update.  While studying a young doctor challenged me to a game of speed chess,  easiest five dollars I’ve ever made.

He was in surgery for nearly seven hours.  Then I had to wait for him to get out of recovery.  He was out of it when I saw him and you could tell it was major surgery.  I left at 9:30pm exhausted from doing almost nothing.

He stayed in the hospital for three days and he is doing well.  The surgeon was able to avoid the nerves and the only side effect is he can’t feel his ear.

The week after was follow-ups after follow-up.  Soon I will be free.

You never know what you are going to find when you surf the internet.

There is a movement in Russia where Russian youth attempt to enforce traffic regulations.  They carry large stickers and try to reason with people not to drive on bike paths, sidewalks, etc.  They are pretty badass standing up to people who try to be tough.  This stuff is NSFW and has some pretty nasty language.  I was a Teamster UPS driver for thirty-seven and heard things that could melt ear wax.  Two warnings.  First, the language is bad.  Second, these videos are incredibly addictive.  Luckily I was on the bike on my trainer so it wasn’t too bad.

My favorite part is when the cops come and shake the hands of the activists.

My brother’s last chemotherapy session today.  From now on it is an occasional appointment until his PET scan in December.  Then we will know everything.  The doctors think he will be fine.  He got very lucky.

Ironic that his illness timed perfectly to interfere with the cycling season.

I’ve already set up the trainer in the basement and if I can’t get on the bike I’ll do it down there every day.I really want to be ready for the new season.

One of the things I need to do is to drop some serious weight.  I’m going to use the recent picture of John Goodman as an incentive.

I see they caught the guy who hit and killed the cyclist.  They keep calling it an accident but the person who hit him slowed down and then sped away.

http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2015/10/13/driver-in-fatal-hit-and-run-identified-charges-pending/

Last week of my brother’s chemotherapy and then I will have much more free time.

Another cyclist killed close to here.  This one is a 70 year old experienced Oberlin cyclist.

I ride these same roads.  The scum that hit him took off.  Hope they catch him.

70-year-old cyclist killed in hit-and-run

My wife saw this and doesn’t want me riding by myself. It certainly won’t stop me.

Nothing to do with cycling but this is what is going on.

I spend the entire day with my brother going from doctor to doctor to social worker when we entered an elevator.  My brother looked at me and said, “Is that you?”  I just pointed to the sign.

Eleven days ago I read that a group of five cyclists were hit by a truck and one was killed.  I’ve learned since that another has died from his injuries.  I’ve been so caught up in my own issues that I haven’t paid much attention to what’s going on.  This pierced through the fog.

It happened in Brecksville, Ohio, about twenty-eight miles to the east.  I go there often for poker tournaments.  It is under investigation and we don’t know the cause.  I’ve heard some blame it on sun glare.  I’m sure the truth will come out.  No matter what the reasons, two and dead and others are injured.

Probably the most important thing I’ve learned is there are no guarantees.  It could all be gone tomorrow.  Live life to its fullest and find happiness.  Appreciate the ones and things around you.

Second person has died following cyclist crash in Brecksville

What a year.

This was supposed to be my year.

When I first retired four years ago I spent a year being a caregiver to my younger brother who had colon cancer.  It was a lot of driving him to doctors, radiation and chemotherapy.  Lots and lots of waiting rooms.  Once he passed I planned my year, then my mother got sick with lung cancer.  A cancer that made no sense.  After all, she had smoked for seventy years and it had never bothered her.  Taking care of her was much more time consuming as she was an agoraphobic and couldn’t be left at chemotherapy.  I had to sit there with her for the four to six hour treatments.  After she passed I once again planned my year.

Before that year was to start my two aunts passed, both being around ninety.  Then a couple coworkers died.  I was tired of cancer and death.  I was ready to restart my retired life and get on the bike.

I was able to get out in the Spring even though it was very wet.  I had been on the trainer all Winter so I was ready.  I got up one Saturday in late Spring and all of my obligations were done.  My rental property was completely restored and all I had to do was get on the bike.  I started eating breakfast and the doorbell rang.  I answered it and a lady asked if I lived here.  Yeah?  She said she lived across the street and had backed into my truck.  Did a lot of damage to one side of it.  Oh well, things happen.  No one was hurt and the insurance would take care of it.  I went over and spent an hour talking to insurance people, taking photographs and doing the things adults do.  It was still early so time to get on the bike.

As I walked across the street to come home I got a call from one of my younger brothers.  He needed to go to the emergency room.  Oh no.  It was beginning.

For the past few years the family has been worried about him.  He is an alcoholic and smokes heavily.  I had stopped seeing him as it was too emotional to see him in the state he was in.  I said I’d be right over.

I picked him up and he had a very large lump on the side of his throat and he was scared.  They took him right in and quickly diagnosed him with cancer of the mouth.  It had spread to his neck.  We got an appointment with an oncologist for Monday, just two days away.  There we got the bad news.  He had multiple spots of cancer in his mouth and larynx.  He had two choices.  He could stop smoking and drinking immediately and start treatment or he could call hospice care.  They gave him 30% chance of survival.

Things became complicated very quickly because he didn’t have insurance.  Because of Obamacare he could have got it very cheap but didn’t do it.  Now we had to see Social Workers along with the doctors.  The social worker directed us to a local agency for people with drinking problems.  They offered rehab facilities until they found out he had no insurance.  Instead he would have to do it on his own at home.

He had no choice and immediately stopped drinking and smoking cold turkey.  I stayed at his house during the day to make sure he got through and he did it.  I was surprised.  Then the work had to begin.  Before they would start radiation he had to see a dentist which he hadn’t been to in years.  I had dentist visits, social worker visits, oncologists, surgeons and chemotherapy doctors.  Finally, before the actual treatment began he had to go Cleveland and get a feeding tube installed. Once the radiation began he would have trouble eating.  His triplet brother and I took him there and after a long day it was done.

All summer I took him every day to radiation, once a week to chemotherapy, plus so many other doctors.  Plus since he doesn’t drive also to the pharmacy and stores.  It’s been exhausting for both of us.  The radiation burned his throat so bad that he couldn’t eat and the chemotherapy made him nauseous and tired.

Tomorrow is his last radiation treatment and only two more chemotherapy treatments.  He will have to have surgery in a few months but they expect him to recover.

I’m really impressed that he was able to turn his life around.

This took much more from me emotionally than I expected. I’ve seen too much death and far too much loss. Things will get better.  I will be on the bike for the rest of the year, as long as the weather allows.  Assuming no other major problem appears over the horizon next year will be my year.  I have my fingers crossed.